


N is for Nostalgia

by sunset_oasis



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: (well except for the epilogue lol), Arranged Marriage, Canon Compliant, F/F, slight mention of politics
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-07
Updated: 2018-03-07
Packaged: 2019-03-28 05:37:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,789
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13897401
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunset_oasis/pseuds/sunset_oasis
Summary: "How's your marriage arrangement thing going?" Gabriella asked casually, as if nothing unusual had ever happened between them.Apolline closed her eyes for a moment. "I'm getting married in June," she said."Congratulations, then," Gabriella gave her an easy smile, "and seriously, you could always find romance outside a marriage if you're that inclined to have one."A million things came to her mind, ranging from an indignant"that's wrong even if the marriage IS a political arrangement"to an almost-desperate"is this supposed to be an offer? if not, please don't make it sound like it is."





	N is for Nostalgia

**Author's Note:**

> disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter

Apolline wasn't exactly in a great mood that day.

Earlier, she'd heard her parents talking about possibly arranging a marriage between she and one of the sons of the Delacour family. The Delacours were an old and relatively powerful family in France, with certain influences in the French Ministry, and her family - well, they had influences too, within a different circle. Apolline couldn't help but wonder if her parents were trying to make a deal with the Delacours, if this was some hidden political agenda hidden that they weren't telling her. Perhaps something like the Delacours would push the laws concerning veela rights for them, and her family would help sway the veela circles in Paris to support the Delacours on other political matters.

The more she thought about it, the more she couldn't shake the idea away from her head.

It wasn't exactly that she disliked the two Delacour sons she met today when the family came to visit. They were both polite, at least polite enough to maintain their manners even though they were both affected by her veela charms, which was definitely more than she could say for some men she'd encountered before. The younger brother even made a few insightful political comments that impressed her.

But even so, she just couldn't find herself to be romantically interested in either of them. After years of seeing endlessly people not taking their gazes off her, she felt she could no longer feel any interests to anyone who was attracted to her simply because of her veela charms. She knew it wasn't exactly their fault, not really, but it was just _tiring_.

This was why she decided to come to her friend's party to see if she could cheer herself up. It wasn't exactly working so far, but at least the champagne was good. And since there were other part-veelas in attendance tonight, so she didn't have to feel particularly standing out.

Her eyes wandered around the room and fell onto a dark-skinned woman wearing a bright blue dress, and for a moment Apolline was enchanted as the woman threw her head back and laughed merrily at something her companion said, her curly hair falling back like a slow motion scene in movies. Apolline stared at the women's eyes for a second, huge and brown and seemingly magical.

Apolline turned towards her friend and asked, "Who's that? I thought I know all the part-veelas in France."

Her friend answered, "Oh, Gabriella Zabini? She's an Italian friend of my cousin, I think. And she doesn't have veela blood, if you go nearer to sense it you could see. She probably just really knows how to make her make-up appealing."

Apolline blinked, but as she took a closer look, she could definitely sense that this woman wasn't one of their kind. Apolline just mistakenly thought her as one because she'd been so entranced at first glance, and that was something she'd never felt before -

_Oh._ Apolline stopped, realizing her own faulty logic. She'd never felt like that before, because all veelas were all immune with other veelas' supernatural charms. So of course this Gabriella woman couldn't be a veela.

That didn't really explain how she wasn't herself for a moment.

Gabriella turned her head slightly, and their eyes met. Apolline saw the other woman's full lips curved into a secretive smile for her, as if saying, "I know you felt that connection too." This was all too new experience for Apolline, and she didn't really know how to handle it. So Apolline did the first logical thing that came to her mind, and broke eye contact and turned away, heading towards the bar for a glass of much-needed firewhiskey.

 

* * *

 

It wasn't until much later in the night that they ran into each other again, this time on the dancefloor. When one song changed to the next and everyone switched dancing partners, she somehow ended up with this mysteriously beautiful woman. After exchanging names out of courtesy, Gabriella commented tangentially, "So, has this party been a successful distraction?"

"I'm sorry, what?"

"Oh, just that you seemed to be upset about something earlier, and I merely wonder if the party has taken your mind off it?" she asked, giving Apolline a twirl.

"What gives you the impression that I was upset?" Apolline asked, wondering if she'd been that obvious.

"I read people well," Gabriella shrugged, gazing right into her eyes curiously, "but you don't need to answer me, if it's too personal."

Maybe it was because she wanted to vent about the marriage arrangement so badly, or maybe it was just the firewhiskey she had earlier, she somehow ended up spilling all her worries out on this dancefloor. Gabriella listened attentively as they continued to dance to the tunes, her eyes sparkling with something Apolline didn't understand.

"So you don't want an arranged marriage," she commented once Apolline finished. "Is that so?"

"It's just - so political, no romance at all, and -" Apolline gestured vaguely.

Gabriella laughed, sounding amused. "Do you really believe in romance, though?"

A part of her wanted to say, " _if I meet the right person, of course._ " Another part of her thought, " _Not really, not after so many people who are are attracted to me aren't really attracted to the_  real me."

The other woman smirked knowingly at her hesitance. "True romance isn't easy to find in someone in your condition, I personally think there's nothing wrong with mutually beneficial arrangements, though. It's not as if their family were the only one gaining things from the arrangement."

"Even so - am I supposed to be satisfied with it?"

"Marriages where people gain things other than romance aren't inherently dirtier, and true love is overrated," Gabriella said, seemingly rather flippant as she smirked and gave Apolline a quick kiss on the lips, "Don't worry too much. Good luck."

Before Apolline could react, Gabriella let go of her with an easy wave, and disappeared into the crowd. And Apolline could only stare at the spot she disappeared, feeling electrified by the kiss for the longest time.

 

* * *

 

Apolline didn't meet her again for another three months after that. This time, Apolline was with the younger Delacour son out for lunch in a famous restaurant in the magical parts of Champs-Élysées. She ran into Gabriella in the toilets.

"Nice lipstick color," was the first thing Gabriella said, "suits you."

"Thanks," Apolline replied, out of the instincts, just like every time someone complimented her looks, like this was somehow programmed into her response system. Things she'd been thinking for three months, like, " _why did you kiss me and then disappear_ " were suddenly unable to get out of her mouth.

"How's your marriage arrangement thing going?" Gabriella asked casually, as if nothing unusual had ever happened between them.

Apolline closed her eyes for a moment. "I'm getting married in June," she said.

"Congratulations, then," Gabriella gave her an easy smile, "and seriously, you could always find romance outside a marriage if you're that inclined to have one."

A million things came to her mind, ranging from an indignant "t _hat's wrong even if the marriage IS a political arrangement_ " to an almost-desperate " _is this supposed to be an offer? if not, please don't make it sound like it is._ "

But what she said was, "You do have some very ... liberating opinions."

Gabriella just laughed, amused at her word of choice. "Well, I have to get back to my own fiancé. See you around."

Apolline stopped dead, "Wait - your fiancé?"

"Yeah," she replied lightly.

Apolline studied the other woman closely, before carefully asking, "Is it - an arranged marriage too, or is it - real romance, true love?"

Gabriella threw back her head and laughed, just like the way she'd done three months ago when they'd first met at that party, "Oh, darling, neither. Call it an investment."

 

* * *

 

The next time Apolline saw her, it was on a newspaper announcing the death of her third husband. She looked suitably sad yet still beautiful in the newspaper print. Apolline closed her eyes, and she could almost hear Gabriella's ringing laugh all those years ago, the words " _call it an investment_ " echoing in her head.

She felt overwhelmed, suddenly. Her husband walked over, frowning in concern, "Are you okay?" They'd grown to love each other over the years, first as friends, then as family. It wasn't the romance she'd dreamt of as a child, it wasn't the strange mysterious spark and lure she'd had with Gabriella, but it was - it was love, in a way, regardless. It was enough for Apolline, even on days like this that reminded of her a past she would sometimes rather forget.

"I'm fine," she told her husband, shoving the memories of back down.

 

* * *

 

As Apolline grew older, she thought about Gabriella less and less. She'd started getting immune to the news about her - former unrequited love, if it could be called that - and even though she'd impulsively named her second child after the said unrequited love, she wasn't letting that affect her much nowadays either. As long as they never met again, she may never be affected again.

Most of the days, she just didn't think about those pasts of hers.

It came as a shock when she saw Gabriella's son at a Weasley family gathering. She hadn't seen him at Fleur and Bill's wedding, but perhaps he wasn't dating one of the Weasley children back then.

He looked like her - almost too alike for Apolline to bear. She'd have thought that after not feeling a thing when she saw Gabriella's picture in the newspapers, she'd completely moved on from that past. But her son had some kind of graceful movements that reminded her of his mother, and clearly inherited his mother's charms and wits and beauty. When he laughed, she could almost see Gabriella's shadows if she squint.

Apolline couldn't believe that she could still get nostalgic at all these. She took a deep breath, trying not to shake.

When she refocused again, he was talking to his boyfriend, the youngest of the Weasley son. There was something unfamiliar in his eyes that made her frown, that didn't fit in with her memories with his mother. It took few minutes for Apolline to realize what it was - genuine affection and fondness.

It was something Apolline had never seen in Gabriella. Flirtatious charms and delighted laughter and seductive smiles - yes, but this? Never in her memory. It made Apolline wistful, and oddly, relieved.

The two boys leant towards each other with a passionate kiss, and she stared for a second before turning away, not wanting to intrude on them.

This time, when she walked away, she felt like she finally truly left some pasts behind.

 

**Author's Note:**

> find me on [tumblr](http://ff-sunset-oasis.tumblr.com)


End file.
